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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. net — after costs
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. swing — in golf
  5. cap — a lid
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. clip — a video
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. swing — music
  10. bear — the animal
  11. clip — for paper
  12. net — in sport
  13. clip — to cut
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. sharp — clever
  16. cap — a hat
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. swing — to play on
  20. net — for catching
  21. cap — of ice
  22. bear — the animal
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. sharp — exactly

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com